Art Scene

March 25th - April 7th

The deeply complex, soul-searching rhythm and blues legend Marvin Gaye inspired Soul Salon 10, a multi-media exhibit exploring the late, great musician's work. Fourteen visual artists from the Bay Area and Southern California will be joined by music, spoken word, and slide shows to interpret what his life came to signify before it tragically ended in 1984. Named after one of the Motown artist's favorite songs, The Trouble Man Exhibit will open from 1 to 4 pm on April 2nd at the African American Museum and Library at Oakland. The show continues through May 28th.

1. Feral Colonies
Varnish Fine Art
Fri March 25, 8PM $7, 21+

This multi-tiered artistic presentation illuminates the plight of street cats -- the hunger, disease, thugs and exterminators. Lily LeRouge brings her gothic princess burlesque touch; Freedom Rock, the spastic guitar duo, will rock psychedelic; and along with other artwork, you can catch the premiere of "Kat's Kradle", "the locally produced, chemically dependent film…that had a budget well into two figures."

2. Additive
A Two Person Show of New Work by Kristina Lewis and Josh Feldman
The Gallery Lounge
Fri March 25, 7-9pm
Free

Josh Feldman works in what he calls "clusteral abstracts," something that will make perfect sense when you see it, but for now I can only describe it to you as: circular patterns repeating in randomly beautiful undulations which light up their clear, acrylic form in dazzling displays of color and dimension that tug at your subconscious in ways that keep you glued for a really, really long time. Kristina does similar work but it's more organic and monochromatic; like a Lite-Brite version of city mouse, country mouse. Which, again, will only make sense when you see it. Run, don't walk. The show runs through April 22.

Co-publisher of art zine "Hot and Cold" and co-founder of the Oakland-based art collective Keepsake Society, Chris Duncan finally flies solo with a new exhibit at Giant Robot SF. His mixed media pieces use bird imagery and color play to explore the heavier subjects of life, death, energy and process. This will be the first solo show at Giant Robot and will be on display through May 2nd.

The Canvas Gallery hooks up its first all-photography exhibit. The show features work by a long list of photographers including Gregory Bartning, Veronica Blanco, AJ Nadel, Jason Predock, Adam Wier, and Lauren M. Wong. The Gallery drew inspiration from photography's ability to arrest time, enabling us to "take in the many rich details we don't always notice in our everyday existence." The show will be accompanied by the book release and original pieces for Incredible Eyes, an anthology featuring winners of an international photography contest. The exhibition runs through April 27th 2005.

Jeff Stevens dives into the themes of male stereotypes, specifically comic book renderings of man as brutal, vindictive, greedy, courageous, and virile. He brings levity to his analysis with poignant humor and more than a little irony. Cushman Amesbury would like you to think of his art as a "gateway drug." He plays with darkly seductive and intriguing characters who morph into different perturbations. Like Stevens' work, each frame implies a grander narrative while simultaneously achieving individual points. The Beanweevils will play at the opening; the show continues through April 27.

6. Old is New New Works by Morning Breath
Future Primitive Sound
Thu April 7, 7pm
Free

Doug "Dug1" Cunningham and Jason Noto of "Wave Twisters" and "Turntable Timmy" fame deliver a visual onslaught of skateboard and graffiti aesthetic aiming for the real-deal underground youth, and not the pop-culture masses. The exhibit includes all new works in design, paint and mixed media. These artists have not only designed for Think Skateboards but have done music packaging design for D-Styles, DJ QBert, Eminem, Funk Master Flex, LL Cool J, and Ming & FS. The show runs through June 8th.